"Far less crowded than the Amalfi Coast" Maratea by Beausoleil

We visit Tuscany fairly often, but hadn't seen any of southern Italy so when a timeshare became available in Maratea, we decided it was time to move south for a few weeks.

This was an RCI timeshare in Maratea about halfway up the mountain. There is a flying highway to the top of the mountain and the view are fabulous when not wreathed in fog.

The area is far less touristy than the Amalfi Coast so if you enjoy the touristy things, you will be disappointed. On the other hand, the beaches are stunning and we found a couple good restaurants.

The drive along the coast south of Maratea was not particularly scenic. There has been a lot of unattractive development, mostly cement apartments that are not well maintained. There is little beach access and lots of traffic.

North along the coast is much more attractive, but what we really enjoyed was the inland area. There are abbeys and a huge national park within an easy drive, much more attractive than the beach areas south of town.

The beaches near the resort were small but lovely and well cared for and we did enjoy those.

Maratea, Old Town

The village of Maratea is stacked up the side of a mountain so there are many steps. Some of the streets are only stairways. You can wander for hours enjoying the architecture and flowers. There is a church converted into a Bread Museum that is fun. Even more fun are the views that magically appear at the top of each different section of town.

Not fun is trying to find parking!

Lido Macarro (beach near our resort)

There were a couple nice beaches below our resort halfway up the mountain. The resort has a regular shuttle bus run on a private road that goes back and forth so we spent a couple afternoons on the beach. The first day was very stormy and the waves were washing over the stationary beach umbrellas. It rained off and on so we stayed above the beach in a cozy little cafe and enjoyed our coffee watching the waves crashing on the beach below.

• Pros:Beautiful and unspoiled in the mountains.
• Cons:Ugly, cheap development along the coast.
• In a nutshell:From Maratea go inland or go north and it's beautiful.